Hopes for Japanese diplomacy had grown faint in the late summer of 2014. Russian relations had stalled, as Russia flexed its muscles with rare military exercises on the islands in dispute. North Korea was delaying a report on the abductees, which Japan had been expecting in the middle of September. Possible meetings on the sidelines of APEC in November between Abe and Xi Jinping or Park Geun-hye rest on various conditions that remained in doubt. Tensions in the South China Sea highlighted the military nature of the situation, putting the United States in the forefront. By the end of September, TPP negotiations with the United States also had hit an impasse. Items over this period reflect these troubling conditions, but they also convey optimism that belies Japan’s actual situation—even toward ties to Russia and North Korea. The Japanese media often leave aside the big picture by making a single, narrow development the exclusive focus of discussion. Whereas Southeast Asia and the East China Sea were less of a preoccupation than before, Northeast Asian bilateral ties had been turned into short-term challenges little connected to fundamental issues.

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